Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Everett Appointed Chief Medical Officer of SAMHSA

APA President-Elect Anita Everett, M.D. (pictured left), today was named the Chief Medical Officer at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). She is expected to begin her duties at SAMHSA on September 5.

In her new role, Everett will lead the newly created Office of the Chief Medical Officer, which is expected to provide valuable input into strategic initiatives, policy directions, and legislative issues to ensure that medically researched and clinically approved practices are incorporated in the development and implementation of SAMSHA programs and activities. The office will also play a key role in representing SAMHSA’s clinical perspectives, particularly when working with other Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) entities and federal agencies.

“I’m really excited and really looking forward to starting the new position as Chief Medical Officer at SAMHSA,” Everett told Psychiatric News. “Having a psychiatrist as a member of the leadership team at SAMHSA will enable psychiatrists to join other mental health and public health professionals in guiding the federal component of our nation's behavioral health system.”

Everett is currently the division director of Johns Hopkins Community and General Psychiatry, Bayview Campus, and an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, where her research focuses on health behavior of individuals with long-term mental illness.

Everett was elected president-elect of APA in February and will assume the office of president at the conclusion of the APA Annual Meeting in San Diego in May 2017. She has held numerous leadership roles within the organization, which include trustee-at-large on the APA Board of Trustees and chair of the APA Task Force on Healthcare Reform 2015.

“SAMHSA has selected a great physician whose experience and expertise as a psychiatrist will add value to SAMHSA through its newly created medical office,” said APA President Maria A. Oquendo, M.D. “Her experience will also benefit providers of prevention, treatment, and recovery services for those with mental illness. We look forward to working with Dr. Everett in her new role and with SAMHSA and HHS.”

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